Sustainability: How Does Shopping at The Vegan Kind Supermarket Help the Planet?

At The Vegan Kind Supermarket, we care deeply about the future of our delicate planet. As such, we aim to be as sustainable a business as possible, and do our best to partner with brands who feel the same. A tree is planted for every single order, and each decision we make going forward will have implications on the environment and wildlife in mind. We strive to be an active and proactive business who not only talk about how much they care, but demonstrably show it.

Recently we marched through Glasgow during COP26 to encourage those in power to embrace a plant-based lifestyle and reduce carbon emissions. We carried aloft our large TVK banner, handed out fliers, and had heart-to–heart chats with passing marchers about the myriad of benefits going plant-based has on yourself, the animals, and the planet. Many important decisions were made during the conference of environmental delegates from all around the world - though some feel not enough - and we’re hopeful all countries will stick to their promises. If not, we’ll be part of the large chorus calling them out, and will continue to bang the drum for veganism’s undeniable positive impact!

We currently stock almost 6,000 vegan products including plant-based meats, snacks, drinks, beauty products, cosmetics, and much, much more. Compared to the meat and dairy industries, these goods were produced with far less energy, and with no need to graze down acres and acres of beautiful fields to house cattle and rob the world of precious oxygen from trees. These cattle also produce methane which is a huge contributor to global warming. Going plant-based and cruelty-free is a major boost to the climate emergency.

Recent studies claim that a worldwide en masse planting programme could remove up to a whopping two-thirds of CO2 emissions caused by humans. 9 months ago we partnered with Ecologi.com, an environmental organisation that funds reforestation projects, to plant a tree in developing countries for every single order made at The Vegan Kind Supermarket. At the time of writing, we have planted 60,087 trees and counting! Ecologi calculate that this has led to a carbon reduction of 481.76 tonnes of CO2e. We are extremely proud of these statistics, and can’t wait to see our beautiful forest continue to grow and grow. Head on over to our Ecologi page and have a look around for yourself.

We prefer to work with companies that share our values. For the most part, brands we partner with source their ingredients as locally as possible, thus reducing the need for long travel distances and wasted air fuel. They keep production waste low, recycle where possible, are proudly vegan, and from working conditions to pay treat their staff at all levels as fairly as possible.

All cardboard boxes used to ship out your Vegan Kind Supermarket orders are fully recyclable, and the cardboard “void fill” paper used to tightly pack each box is made from completely recycled paper, as are our subscription boxes. The bubble wrap used to protect glass objects is 100% recycled, recyclable and biodegradable. We also use reusable & recyclable ice packs to keep chilled items cool, and we save and compact all our cardboard and plastic waste.

Our warehouse and office staff use carefully segregated recycling bins for food, cardboard and plastic, and all tetra packs included those brought in by staff from home are carefully disposed of at special sites. Everyone is strongly encouraged to switch lights off after them at all times. We are constantly monitoring the standards and practises we use to pack orders and run all aspects of our business in as sustainable a way as possible.

There are many other small-yet-significant changes we’ve made that are slowly but surely making an impact. For instance, DPD are our main courier service since they are a committed Carbon Neutral company - who now do all London deliveries in electric powered vehicles! - and we work closely with Food Not Bombs and Rutherglen Food Bank, both volunteer local charities who provide free vegan meals to those in need via food waste.

We also have a long list of future sustainable plans in mind including:

There will be no future unless we all act now, and act fast. The Vegan Kind promise to be a leader in the health and well being of our precious, beautiful planet.

Main image courtesy of Porapak Apichodilok from Pexels. Recycling image courtesy of Lara Jameson from Pexels.